Battle Lines
by ButterflyLace
Summary: When the FoH attacks a peaceful mutant community an undeclared war against 'normal' people and mutants starts, and the X-Men are right in the center of it. So far the couplings are Lancitty and Jean/Scott. Hopefully more later, please read and review.
1. The Same Dough

Battle Lines

Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men Evolution. They are the sole property of Marvel Comics and WB. I do, in fact, own all original characters I put forth in this story.

A/N: This is the first time I have ever written fanfiction for the X-Men universe. I'm still getting used to the characters and the way things are so I apologize ahead of time for any continuity errors or mischaracterizations. I ask that if you come across any you kindly point them out in a review. I enjoy constructive criticism because it gives me a chance to improve. Please read and review. I won't ask for so many reviews before I continue, but I will admit that they help me along by providing an ego boost. So, with all that said I will not tie you up any further. Read and enjoy. ~Lacey~

Chapter 1: The Same Dough Kitty's Point of View 

            "Everyone is kneaded from the same dough, but not baked in the same oven." The words of the old Yiddish proverb played in my mind over and over again as if they were a mantra. When I had been a small girl, confused as to why I was different from all the other children, my father had told me the proverb and explained to me its meaning. Since then I had learned to chant it in my mind whenever I felt out of place, which was quite often. I'd always been different from those around me. First because I was more intelligent than they were, and later because I had the x-gene and my powers had manifested themselves. How many teenage girls could walk through walls?

            When I moved into Professor Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters I found myself using my mantra less and less. I was in a place where other teenagers possessed the x-gene and awesome powers that they too were learning to control. I fit in with everyone else for the first time in my life, even at school, because my friends from the institute were always there. But it didn't last forever. Almost overnight my security of fitting in at Bayville High and with the rest of the world had been turned upside down, and my mantra began to play itself again. I had to remind myself that I too was human, created by God, but made differently from the rest. I was no lower than they were, no matter what they said. I had to remind myself that being a mutant didn't make me less human, and even though 'normal' people were speaking horribly of mutants they just didn't understand.

            How did everything get turned upside down? It started at 4:30 in the morning when the professor awakened all of the students. Though it's not exactly strange to be summoned from the warmth of your bed quite early at the Xavier Institute, it is unusual when there isn't a scheduled danger room or survival training session. I stumbled out of my room with a bad case of bed head and a touch of the morning grumps. My roommate, Rogue, looked about ready to kill anyone who spoke to her, so I did the smart thing and kept my mouth shut.

            In the hallway we all gathered, each of us clad in pajamas, with tired eyes. No one spoke, and the only sound came from our constant yawning. One would try and stifle a yawn and before they finished another had caught it. The adults stood before us, looking more alert, and very grave. Miss. Monroe eyed us with care and an expression I could not read. Logan stood there with his normal nonchalant expression, but his eyes gave way something serious. Beside him stood Mr. McCoy who looked worried. The professor was still moving about, ushering the last few students who'd sought to sleep a few moments more, into the hallway with the rest of us.

            My first instinct was to look to Scott for answers. He was the unspoken leader of the students, captain of the team, and usually the first to know when there was trouble. I dimly remembered that last time we had gathered like this someone had tampered with Juggernaut's containment field and the professor had been called away. Scott's façade gave no answers. He was just as confused as the rest of us. I sighed and crossed my arms over my chest, stifling a yawn of my own.

            "I am sorry to have awakened you so early this morning, but something serious has happened." The professor announced when all of us were finally together. I glued my eyes to him, knowing that it must have been important if the X-Men were needed in any way.

            "What is it professor?" Jean asked. It was no surprise; she was usually the first to ask questions if Scott didn't beat her to it. They were the oldest members of the X-Men, Professor Xavier's first recruits.

            "There has been an attack by the Friends of Humanity on a mutant community in Jackson Mississippi. I received a call from one of my friends living there. They tried to fight back as best they could, but things are a mess and they are in desperate need of assistance." Rogue gasped beside me. It wasn't loud, and I wasn't sure how many people heard her. My tired mind registered that she was from Mississippi. I shifted my gaze furtively towards her so she wouldn't see I was snooping. There was worry in her eyes, a kind that I had never seen from her before.

            "You mean Peace was attacked?" Rogue asked. Her Mississippi accent was prominent in her sleepy voice. I didn't know what Peace was, but figured it was what the other mutants called their community. I was correct.

            "That's right." Logan growled. My heart twisted painfully. It didn't seem right for someone to attack a community with such a gentle name. But the past year had taught me that the Friends of Humanity didn't need an excuse to 'rid the world of the mutant plague'. They were an organization feared by all mutants. Horror stories were told by all about experimentations done to "cure" mutants of the x-gene, or attacks by radical members who just wanted to exterminate them like termites and other icksome bugs. 

Mutants created the mutant communities to keep the peace. They each had a strict code of conduct. To live in the communities you had to agree only to use your powers around other mutants and never against humans. If you had trouble controlling your powers you would work together with others in the community until you could. Breaking the laws resulted in severe punishment as the community leaders worked with the law enforcement department to keep things peaceful. There was an unspoken rule between the communities and their respective cities that said mutants wouldn't attack the normal people if the normal people wouldn't attack the mutants. It was a shock to me and to everyone around me that someone had broken that law.

"Are we, like,  going to help?" I asked. I was ready to leave that moment.

            "Yes. I would like the older members to come with me, and the newer members to stay here and train with Logan in case there is another attack. We will be on call to defend any community that needs us and to help them clean up afterwards."

            "You really think there is going to be another attack?" Amara inquired, her voice sounding unsure. She was one of the new recruits, and she was still unsure of her powers and how to live in a world of technology. It was a shock to me to discover that I was a mutant, it must have been a greater shock to her, princess of Nova Roma, to find out that not only was she different from the people around her, but there was an entirely different world outside her own.

            "We do not know, but we want to be prepared." Miss. Monroe stated comfortingly.

            "What are we waiting for?" I asked, beginning to walk down the hall towards the elevator. Jubilation and Jaime giggled and I stopped.

            "For everyone to change, unless you wanna go down there in your pajama's half-pint." I felt a blush creep into my cheeks. The professor nodded to dismiss us and I walked back to my room only slightly embarrassed. Rogue was in the room before me and I couldn't see her face, but I saw her rummaging through her drawers for her undergarments. Her uniform was laid out neatly on her bed. I turned to my wardrobe and took my uniform out and laid it on my bed in the same fashion.

            "Have you ever been to Peace?" I asked curiously.

            "Yes." She snapped and stomped out of the room to change in the bathroom. I huffed to myself and crossed my arms over my chest. It was only a simple question. She didn't have to snap at me. I could never understand the way Rogue was. Sometimes she was a normal girl, chatting about the latest rumors at school and asking who was taking who to the dance, but other times… Other times she would snap at you for no reason, call you pathetic and stupid, or just ignore you. She would never let anyone know how she was feeling or what was upsetting her. She kept it to herself and shut everyone out. You could always tell when she was doing it, or at least I could, because that was when she became the meanest. Something was bothering her and it had to do with Peace.

            I sighed, knowing that I wasn't going to figure out what was wrong with Rogue any time soon. She was a great enigma to me and to many of the other X-Men. She refused to open up to anyone or get close to anyone. I often wondered what happened in her past that made her that way. I picked up my uniform and after closing the door I shrugged off my pajamas and stepped into the one-piece suit. After I finished I took a face-cleansing wipe from its small plastic box on the vanity and wiped my face clean. Afterwards I took my brush and ran it through my dark hair then pulled it up into a ponytail. I applied just enough make-up to make me look awake and then opened the door. Rogue was just coming out of the bathroom, her face washed, hair brushed, and pajamas in a bundle in her hands. For once she didn't have her dark make-up caked onto her face, in fact she didn't have any make-up on at all. I was shocked at how pale she really was.

            "We'd better get going." She stated simply as she tossed her green and orange pajama set onto her bed. She sounded calmer than she had before she left, and more awake. I decided that she'd had a case of the morning grumps as well. I followed her out of the room, yawning. What I wouldn't have given for a cappuccino at that moment. Jean was waiting at the elevator when we got there and when it opened the three of us stepped on. We held it for Evan at the last moment and then were on our way to the jet hanger.

            Scott, Kurt, and the adults were already waiting when we got there. I smiled slightly when I saw Kurt porting onto the jet with a coffee maker and pastries. I wasn't looking forward to a morning without any breakfast, and frankly I wasn't looking forward to a couple hours flight with others who hadn't had their breakfast either.

            "Go ahead and go on inside. I will brief you all on the situation in route to Mississippi." Professor X ordered kindly. I nodded and climbed the stairs into the jet and took a seat next to Evan. Kurt and Rogue took the two seats behind us, and Scott and Jean the two in front of us. Miss. Monroe and Mr. McCoy took the pilot's seat, and a few moments later Professor X locked his wheel chair into its usual place. The doors closed and I hooked my seatbelt around my waist to prepare for takeoff. When I was a little girl I was afraid of airplanes. It was hard to believe that now I had enough frequent flyer miles to tour the world twice over and enough flight experience to legally get a flight license, if only I were old enough.

            We were in the air a few minutes later. The Mr. McCoy was clearing out flight path with the local airport and Kurt was pouring coffee into paper cups while Miss. Monroe passed the pastries around to everyone. I took a raspberry pastry and awaited the coffee.

            "Thanks Aunty O." Evan said as he took the last cherry pastry. Kurt came up and offered two cups of coffee. Evan turned him down, but I took a cup and a few packages of vanilla cream. I wasn't exactly one for coffee unless it was flavored with chocolate or made into cappuccino, but I needed the caffeine to help wake me up so I dumped the cream into the black brew and bore with the bitter flavor.

            "We will be arriving in Jackson in about an hour. The situation there is dire. Mutants as well as members of the F.o.H are injured and many buildings were damaged in the attack." The professor began to explain. I took a bite of my pastry. "The attack ended just before my friend contacted me this morning. Our mission is to help rescue workers with both mutants and the humans caught in the attack and to restore a bit of order in the chaos." For a selfish and cruel moment I wondered why we would want to help the humans. They had attacked Peace and therefore gotten what they deserved when the residents defended themselves. 

I felt bad a moment later when I remembered what we stood for. Like the communities the X-Men's goal was to promote a peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants, and part of that was showing kindness to those who hated us. Martin Luther King said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." At the Xavier Institute we lived by the same philosophy. By showing kindness to our enemies we hoped that perhaps one day they would show the same kindness to us.

No one questioned our mission. It was clear-cut. We didn't need any further explanation as to the circumstance, nor did we really want any. At least I didn't. I didn't want to think about what had happened. All I really wanted to do was forget how cruel and heartless people could be. While I was growing up my father kept me believing that life was perfect and people were all generally good. I believed that all "bad" people were punished and justice would be served whenever a crime was done. It wasn't the right thing for my father to teach me. I was shocked when Lance betrayed me because I was naive enough to trust in all people. I was even more shocked to find that people did horrible things to people just because they were different, and the law overlooked them because they didn't want to see the crime. Maybe I would have been more knowledgeable and saved myself a little hurt had he let me know from the beginning what life was really like.

Silence reigned supreme for quite some time. No one really wanted to talk, but if they were anything like me they didn't want to stay silent either. We were all anticipating what would happen. We did every mission. Sometimes we would talk about it, and others we would keep ourselves in an uncomfortable silence like the one we were in. Finally someone broke the silence. I was more than surprised because it was the person everyone would least expect, Rogue.

"Professor, exactly how much of Peace was damaged in the attack?" Her voice was steady, but full of worry and… fear, maybe. I couldn't figure it out. I turned to look at her, everyone was. She didn't seem to notice, as her eyes remained glued on the professor. He turned around, a mask hiding his feelings firmly in place.

"Not a home was left untouched." He replied. I kept my eyes on my friends face. Her green eyes flashed and she closed her eyes. Something was bothering her, more than ever now. She leaned against the back of her seat, her eyes still closed, and once again silence filled the jet. I looked over to Kurt worriedly. His eyes met mine and I could tell he shared the same worry for Rogue that I did.

"What is it Rogue, what's wrong?" Kurt inquired after a few moments of silence. His voice, laced with a heavy German accent, was no louder than a whisper. He didn't want Rogue to feel like he was broadcasting to the entire group that something was wrong and therefore draw attention to her.

"What makes you think something is wrong?" She asked, not opening her eyes. I didn't point it out to her, but that there was one sign that something was wrong.

"We know something is wrong. Please tell us. It will make you feel better to get it off your chest." I advised. I was curious, but I also knew that when one teammate was having emotional problems it could be a danger to everyone on the team. We couldn't risk anyone breaking down or someone depending on them could be hurt, or even worse they themselves could be.

"It's just that… I received a letter from my foster mother yesterday. We write to each other every now and then even though we are on two different sides of the fight. She told me that she was staying with an ill friend in Peace. I'm so afraid for her. She's blind and her power isn't defensive." I gasped, suddenly feeling really badly for Rogue. She had someone down there she cared about. I couldn't begin to imagine how worried my friend was. She'd mentioned Irene around me before. She seemed like such a wonderful woman. I didn't know many people who would take in and care for a 10-year-old girl, especially when they were already hindered by a disability.

"Mutants look after one another, especially when one has a disadvantage. She's probably just fine. We will find her when we get there and you will see." Kurt declared reassuringly. He put a three fingered had on her shoulder and squeezed it gently. She opened her eyes and I could see how moist they were, as if she were ready to cry but wouldn't let herself.

"I haven't seen her since I moved to Bayville. I wanted to ask her to come and live with me, but at the time I had Mystique. I know she's a capable woman, but I got so used to carin' for her. That was always the way of things. I would take care of her an' she would take care of me." I listened silently, giving her a chance to talk. It was the first time she'd opened up to me even though we'd been sharing a room for almost a year. I'd always given her the chance, but it wasn't her style to get close to anyone.

"Perhaps you can speak to the professor. She could come and live with us at the institute." Kurt suggested. I nodded my head vigorously. It was a great idea. We could always use more guardians who'd already been through the process of learning to control their powers. It would be nice to have another mother figure around. Miss Monroe was the only one. It would also be good for Rogue.

"Maybe." She whispered, and once again we fell silent, and we were silent until we landed in Jackson, Mississippi. I couldn't believe my eyes when I stepped out of the jet. The sun was just rising over what looked like a set for the latest war movie. I could see where the clean-cut lawns had been. I could see where beautiful homes once stood, but there was nothing left of them, at least nothing worth looking at. I put a hand up to my mouth and closed my eyes. In my 16 years of existence I had never seen anything like it.

"Aunty O, where do we start?" Evan asked. I opened my eyes and gave her a questioning look of my own. She rested one hand on my shoulder and the other on her nephew's.

"I don't know." She replied. There was gloom in her voice and as I looked to the sky I could see heavy clouds rolling in over the city, covering the little bit of cheerful sun left.

"Are you the X-men?" A police officer asked, running up to us.

"Yes. You were told to expect our arrival?" The professor asked.

"We have been waiting. There are people trapped in buildings that we cannot reach, I was told that you have someone who's able to walk through walls."

"That would be me." I announced. The cop looked me over with an air of disbelief. I could see that he didn't think someone so young could handle a task so large. I didn't have to be a telepath to understand that, I'd been getting it all my life.  "I'm perfectly capable. I've been trained to handle many situations, including rescues." He nodded his head, still seeming to have his doubts. Let him have his doubts, I thought. He couldn't exactly wait around for someone older. I wondered if he'd been told that we were all teenagers.

"I can also get into inaccessible buildings, I have the power to teleport." Kurt spoke up. The look of disbelief I had received was nothing compared to the shock registered on the officer's face when he saw Kurt. I used to be afraid of his appearance myself, but I learned to look beyond the outside and into the heart. Kurt's heart was probably one of the largest in the universe. I found myself slightly angry with the cop for judging us by our appearances and not our abilities.

"Where do we start?" I asked, trying as hard as I could to get the officer's attention off of Kurt. He couldn't help the way he was born, and it hurt him when people became frightened, or when they teased him, and even worst when they just blatantly stared. He blinked his eyes and focused on me once again.

"I'll have the captain come and speak with you. As for the rest I need you to come with me. I need to know your powers so I can find where you're best suited to help." The other four teenagers took after the officer as well as Miss. Monroe and Mr. McCoy. The professor looked to us for a moment before following after as well. "_I must speak with the officials, wait here until you are told what to do". _His comforting voice filled my mind.

_"I'm scared."_ I told him.

_"Everything will be all right Kitty. You have been trained to rescue. Use your gift and help these people, show them that we care." _He said as he wheeled away. I watched everyone disappear into the disaster and I wanted to scream for them to come back. Kurt placed his three-fingered hand on my shoulder comfortingly.

"I think that's the captain." He stated pointing with his other hand to a man dressed in a disheveled uniform. He had an air of authority about him, the kind that demanded respect.

"He wasn't kidding, you two are a strange couple." The man said as he stepped up to us. "How old are ya kid?" He asked me. His accent resembled Rogues, only slightly thicker.

"Fifteen, almost sixteen." I replied. He looked over to Kurt with the same question.

"Sixteen." He answered.

"I must warn ya. It ain't a pretty sight. Inside those buildings there may be people hurt badly or even dead. I need ta know that you guys can handle it 'for I send ya in." The word dead sent a chill down my spine. I knew that there would be people dead, but I hadn't really thought about it. I nodded slowly despite my own fear. I was a lot tougher than everyone thought I was.

"We can handle it. Just tell us where to go so we can help before it's to late." Kurt insisted.

"Okay. I'm gonna split the two of ya up and put ya with two different rescue groups. I need ta know your names."

"Shadowcat." I declared nonchalantly. I didn't think to use my real name. It was habit to use Shadowcat whenever I was on mission.

"Nightcrawler." Kurt said beside me. The captain wrote down the names apathetically, but then looked at us like we'd each grown another head.

"Those are some strange names." I giggled, realizing how it must have sounded. There was really no reason to use my code name.

"They are the names we use when we are on mission." I explained. He seemed okay with that answer and motioned for us to follow. "Like how many people are going to be in the rescue groups?" I asked curiously.

"As many as we can have. We've got firefighters and paramedics along with some mutants who weren't injured. We're still swamped. Peace wasn't exactly a small community." I hated the way he used past tense when referring to Peace. We walked in silence for a few more moments and then came up to a group of people.

"Here ya go… err Shadowcat. This will be your team. It's referred to as team red if you get separated from them. Your team leader is Mari Takaishi; she's the blonde woman over there." I turned to look and when I turned around again Kurt and the captain were gone. I was alone. The only X-Man in a group of strangers, all of whom would no doubt be grown adults. I walked timidly towards the team leader, not sure of what I should say.

"Excuse me, are you, like, the team leader?" I asked warily. She turned around and looked down at me. She was a tall and intimidating woman.

"Yes I am. May I help you?" Though she looked intimidating her voice was kind. I felt a little less nervous.

"I'm Shadowcat from the X-Men… I'm like supposed to join your rescue group and help you."

"Well, we could use all the help we can get. I was under the impression that the group coming would be older, though." I shook my head.

"Most of us are in high school. I'm the youngest of the group here today."

"All right. Well, what can you do to help?" Before I could answer a girl who looked only slightly older ran up. Her face was red from the heat of working hard, and her mousy blond hair was falling from its once tight ponytail. A pair of small oval shaped glasses slipped down her nose. She pushed them up, and frowned at the older woman.

"It's no use. We can't find a way into the building. Even Kendra can't find a crack she can fit through. We know there are people in there, but we can't get to them. The stones are too heavy." She said sorrowfully. "What I wouldn't give for super strength." I felt a proud smile creep onto my face despite the circumstances.

"I can walk through walls." I proclaimed. The girl noticed me standing there for the first time. Her eyes brightened.

"You can?" She asked hopefully. I nodded my head.

"Well, that helps. Celest, take her to the building, and be careful."

"Yes, mom." Celest stated and then motioned me to follow. I kept my eyes on her, trying not to focus on the devastation around me. I noticed that despite the warm spring weather she was clothed from head to toe. She had a pair of blue jeans, with a turtleneck t-shirt and a pair of opera gloves. My mind immediately made a connection with Rogue. Celest was a mutant and she couldn't be touched.

"Here we are." She announced. Groups of people were surrounding a collapsed multi-story building. A white cat crawled up to us and I jumped when the cat turned into a teenage girl. I shouldn't have been surprised given Rahne's power, but at the moment I wasn't expecting animals to suddenly become human. The cat person began speaking to Celest in another language. I quickly identified it as Japanese.

"It's okay Kendra, she can walk through walls." Celest said in English, indicating me with a wave of her hand. Kendra studied me for a moment.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"Shadowcat." I replied. Celest giggled softly and said,

"Okay, that _has_ to be a code name." I laughed and nodded my head.

"I guess it's like habit to use my code name when I'm in uniform. My real name is Kitty."

"Your dressed like a comic book hero, you know that right?" Kendra asked. I nodded.

"It comes with being an X-man."

"So your in some kind of organization. Real life super heroes?" Celest inquired, generally interested.

"Not super heroes. Just a bunch of pariahs and freaks trying to defend a world that hates them."

"Ah, mutants. Come to think of it my mother told me about an hour ago that a group would be coming to help us, and lord knows we can use all the help we can get. I seriously thought you would all be older and trained in rescue missions."

"Well we're not older, but we are trained in rescue missions. It's what we do at the Xavier Institute. We learn how to help people and defend them in hopes that maybe one day they will accept us."

"Well, here's your chance supergirl. We heard voices coming from inside the building earlier, but we couldn't find a way in. There aren't even holes big enough for a cat to get through. That means we can't get in to see if everyone's all right, and it also means that there isn't a lot of oxygen." Kendra explained, "We need you to get in there and see if they are all right."

"I can do better than that. I can get them out. As long as I am touching them I can pull them through the wall with me."

"Great! We heard the voices coming from this part of the building. It seems like a good place to start. Be careful, and take this with you." She said, handing me a backpack. "Inside are small oxygen canisters and your general first aid items." I slipped the backpack on my back and walked up to the building. I put my hand on the cold brick, feeling it under my hand for a moment before the pressure disappeared and I passed right through. It was dark inside, and my lungs protested the dirty, stale air by forcing me into a coughing fit. I stood for a moment, allowing my eyes to get used to the darkness. I stopped coughing, but still found it hard to breath. If I were in here too long I would have to use one of the oxygen canisters for myself.

"Hello? Is anyone in here?" I called. My lungs protested my use of oxygen by throwing me into another coughing fit. I took off the backpack and dug through it. There were about five miniature oxygen tanks, a flashlight, bandages, and other useful items. I pulled out one of the oxygen tanks and hooked it to my belt, and switched on the flashlight before putting the backpack on once more. If I was in there to long I would need the oxygen, and chances were that whoever was in there also needed the oxygen.

When there was no answer I took to exploring the place. The floor was an obstacle course of rubble, furniture, and various other household items. I frowned I stepped on the remnants of an antique lamp. It was the same design as my mother's favorite… I coughed again. I needed to find these people, and fast. I shone my flashlight into the corner. It was only a pile of rubble. I took a step in the opposite direction when I heard a faint cough. I shot around and shined my flashlight on the pile of rubble once more. I studied it carefully before I noticed a leg sticking out from under some debris. I gasped in horror, and rushed over to the corner, literally jumping all obstacles.

"Oh my god." I whispered as I kneeled down beside the person. It was a female, not very large, probably a child. I could tell that much by the shoe. I picked off some of the debris; it was mostly wood pieces, glass, and such. I fought tears when I saw how young the girl really was, she couldn't be more than eight years old. She wasn't even a mutant! At least her powers weren't developed yet. Mutant powers didn't develop until adolescence. 

There was a small wound on her head, and she seemed in between consciousness and unconsciousness. Her tiny eyes blinked open and closed, as if she were struggling to stay awake. I pushed more off of her to find that she was on top of a mattress, pinned down by a large beam.

"Sweetie, can you like focus on me?" I asked. She coughed and groaned. "Can you breath?" I was hoping she understood the words I was speaking to her. She shook her head a little. I took the canister off my belt and hooked the mask onto her face, turning it to a low setting. After she'd taken a few breaths I removed it so I could ask her some questions. "What's your name?"

"Mia." She whispered.

"Okay Mia. I am going to get you out of here, can you tell me where it hurts, if it hurts at all?"

"My head, and my leg." She replied, still whispering. I put the oxygen mask on her again and then picked her up, phasing her small body through the beam. I was careful with her legs, not wanting to injure them anymore. I quickly ran to the nearest wall I could find that led outside. I could have tried shortcuts, but who knew where they would take me.

The sun temporarily blinded me, and I took deep steady breaths to fill my lungs with fresh oxygen again. I took the mask off Mia and set her on the ground while someone called over a stretcher. She was more alert now, and she was crying. I held her small body close, wanting to cry as well.

"Do you know where mama is?" She asked me softly. I shook my head. "Mama tried to stop the bad people who don't like her powers by making the room shake, but they didn't go away and something blew up. When mama made the room shake again my floor broke. She wanted me to stay in my bed while she tried to get rid of the bad people. I did, but I didn't want to. I wanted to get powers like hers and help her." Mia explained. A stretcher came for her and the rescue workers placed her on it.  The simple words the young child had spoken sank into my heart. Children had a way of summing up disasters in a simple way, as if they saw them differently from adults and teenagers. She had wanted to help her mother, and I was determined to if she couldn't.

"How many people live in your apartment building?" I asked.

"Mrs. Ally and her family make four, and then Mr. And Mrs. Reynolds, but they are the only other ones, and mama. We got the new apartments, not many other people live there yet." She said.

"Miss. We have to load her now." I nodded at the paramedic who'd addressed me, and turned to the building. Mia's mom, I decided, must have had a power similar to Lance's. If someone had indeed set off a bomb, and then she'd used her power it was highly likely that that was what caused the building to collapse. I'd seen Lance in action, and he certainly had the power to do as much. 

"How are things in there?" Celest asked, coming up behind me.

"It's like really hard to breath, and it's really dark. I almost didn't see the little girl. She'd fallen from her bedroom upstairs. I think her mattress saved her from being hurt worst. There should be about six residents in there, not counting any FoH members that might have been trapped."

"You should be using one of the oxygen masks. According to witnesses that building has been down for nearly three hours. There aren't any openings large enough to let enough air inside." Kendra chided.

"I need to save the oxygen for the victims." I explained.

"Just wear a mask on the lowest setting while you are in there. It's not good for your lungs to be overworking." I nodded my head and took another canister out of the backpack and hooked it to my belt like I had the one before. I slipped the mask over my head and let it rest around my neck. Celest handed me something.

"Mom just gave this to me for you to use. I have one and so does everyone else on our team. If you're in trouble just give us a call, and call when you are bringing out a victim so we can have a stretcher ready." I took the walkie-talkie and hooked it to my belt beside the oxygen.

"I'm going in again." I declared. I walked up to the wall in a slightly different location than I had before. I pushed against it and was once again inside the building. I put the oxygen mask on like I had been instructed to and brandished my flashlight in front of me. I wasn't lucky enough to find anyone right away; it was almost twenty minutes before I heard the slightest indication of someone around. I was getting tired, and quite discouraged when a painful gasp assaulted my ears. I jumped, and held back a scream. I hadn't been expecting any sound. It was frighteningly quiet inside the tomb of brick and wood. Once I'd calmed my beating heart I headed in the direction I'd heard the gasp.

It'd come from beyond one of the few walls left standing. I phased through, finding a man struggling to sit up, despite his injuries, which could be clearly seen. Crimson blood seeped through his white shirt. His face was pale, and under his eyes were dark circles. He was having trouble breathing and it was clear his visible injuries were not the only ones. I walked up to him, but he shrunk away.

"Get away from me animal." His words stung, I'd heard people call mutants a lot of things, usually nicknames like mutie or freak, but no one had called me one to my face, and no one had ever called me an animal before. I took off my mask so I could speak more clearly.

"I'm here to help you." I told him. He moved away from me. It was obvious how much pain he was in.

"Just stay away." He shouted as he picked up a piece of debris and tossed it at me. I jumped out of its way, but it still managed to hit my leg, hard. There would be a bruise there.

"Sir, please. You're injured, I can get you out of here." He was gasping for breath now. The movement had aggravated him. I took a step closer, praying that he would only listen to me and allow me to help.

"I don't need the help of a freak like you." He gasped.

"Please." I begged. I wanted him to survive, to understand that I wanted to help him, that I was human.

"Get out of here." He threw another item in my direction, but the toss was weak and it didn't reach my person. I bent down and took another oxygen canister out, showing it to him.

"I want you to put this on. It will help you breath." I tried to reason with him. He glared at me.

"I'd rather die than accept help from a mutant." He cried. His eyes rolled back and he passed out. I ran to him. I was no doctor, but I knew he was not in good shape. I checked his pulse. It was next to none. Gently I slipped the oxygen mask on his face, and I pulled out bandages from the backpack and pressed them against his wound to stop the bleeding. I sat there for five minutes, but it was all in vain. He died in my arms. Tears fell down my cheeks as I picked up the walkie-talkie.

"If anyone is hearing this, I found another victim." Celest picked up a moment later.

"What's the condition?" She asked. I took a deep breath of the stale air.

"He's dead. I tried to help him, but he wouldn't let me." I told the story, and my heart ached. It was a very disheartening experience. I couldn't believe that someone would hate a group of people so much that they would rather die than accept help from a mutant. I left the man where he lay, as I was told to do. He was trapped there in his chosen tomb until all were rescued and everything was in order. Then bodies could be retrieved.

The next couple of hours went better. I managed to find the rest of the residents a lot quicker than I expected. Mia's mom was thrilled to know that her baby girl was all right. She told me that she hadn't meant to collapse the building, but she had become angry. I told her about Lance, and his power, and how he had trouble controlling the strength of his tremors sometimes. Though finding so many people alive and bringing them to safety was a major ego booster after I'd lost the FoH man, I was glad to get out of the building. Using my power so much was leaving me exhausted. Like most mutants, extended use of my gift was very taxing, and the emotional strain of the situation was weighing down on me, and every time I thought about it I felt like I was adding another weight to it.

"Our team is to have lunch at the shelter." Mari announced once we were all together. There were a lot more people on our team that I had originally thought. "Team purple and team green will also be eating lunch at this time. We have one hour. I know all of you have been working hard, but the day's not over." We all nodded, understanding what she was saying, "I would like you to stay with someone in your team and keep your walkie-talkie's on so we can meet again." She dismissed us, and I followed behind Celest and Kendra. None of us really wanted to say anything, so we kept silent.

The shelter was nothing more than a circus tent pitched up in a field with a bunch of stations, cots, and tables around. The X-Jet stood out of place amongst everything in the field. There were so many people around that I was almost sure I could get lost among them. I watched the people, wondering who was who. I was hoping to find some of the other X-Men, but it didn't seem likely I would. I sighed, following my two teammates to the food table. 

There were sandwiches, soup, rolls, and bottled water. I knew I couldn't afford to be picky about what I ate, and I needed as much as I could get, but I timidly asked if they had any vegetarian sandwiches. I kind old woman shook her head sadly, but told me the soup was broccoli and cheese if I didn't mind dairy. I wasn't fond of broccoli, but I took a bowl any ways, along with a roll and a bottle of water. There weren't many places to sit, so I headed in the direction of the X-Jet. The ramp was still down and I knew I could sit on that.

"Are you sure you're all right." I heard a rescue worker ask. A very regal looking woman stood near him. She nodded her head.

"Yes, but she isn't." She said, indicating a woman on a stretcher, "She's a friend of mine. She had a head injury; I think that's all. I was told that the hospitals are full."

"Yes, they are. We are keeping the injured in the shelter for now. What is she called?"

"Most know her as Destiny. Anyone from the community looking for her will use that name."

"Why don't you check her in and we will get her into the tent."

The rescue worker took her to a table where I saw the professor. I thought about going over to him, but my eye caught someone sitting alone on the X-Jet's ramp. It was Rogue. I quickly made my way over to her, forgetting that I was supposed to be staying with my team. I supposed she was supposed to be with her team as well, but it didn't look like she was.

Her head was bent down and her hair covered her face, but by the shaking of her shoulders I could tell she was crying. It wasn't something she did often, or in public. I'd seen her make-up smeared from tears before, but she'd never actually cried in front of me. It was human nature to cry, even Scott did, I was sure, but the shock of seeing Rogue openly sobbing unnerved me a bit.

"Care for company?" I asked, taking a seat next to her. An empty bowl and a half full bottle of water were all that was left of her lunch.

"Not really, Kitty." She stated.

"I'm just sitting over here to eat." I said, taking a small bite of my roll. Her shoulders stopped shaking and she wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She looked up at me with sad eyes. Something had happened.

"The last house we went to before we came to lunch was Irene's friend's. I remembered it from when I was little. The burgundy trim, the clean cut lawn, the flowers. It wasn't collapsed like some of the buildings. You could almost imagine that everything was just fine. None of the houses on the block were damaged badly. We split up to search inside for anyone injured. I was chosen to go inside. The house was a wreck. Ms. Molly's power is to manipulate the wind. It looked like she'd created a tornado, but that didn't help her. She was dead when I saw her." Rogue took a deep breath, "Irene's things were all over the room, but she was nowhere to be seen. I've asked everyone, but no one knows where she is. One person said they saw her being taken away from the buildin'. I found this on the ground." She unhooked a piece of jewelry from around her neck and dangled it in front of me. It was a locket.

I took the small heart from her and opened it. Inside was a picture of Rogue when she was younger. She still wore dark make-up, but her hair was longer and a large smile brightened her face. On the other side was a woman with a warm smile and a kind face. A pair of dark glasses covered her eyes.

"It's beautiful. Is that Irene?"

"Yeah. Ms. Molly took the pictures for her a few years ago. I'd given Irene the locket for Christmas, and she insisted on putting pictures in it, even though she couldn't see them. She always told me it was the same principal as wearing jewelry she couldn't see. She wanted to show everyone else who could see."

"She sounds like such a wonderful woman."

"She was… Is… I don't know where she is. If the FoH kill poor sweet Ms. Molly, who was sick, doesn't it mean they could have killed Irene even though she can't see? It seems so inhumane, but what if they did?"

"There are a lot of people in the shelters. I can go with you and we can look for her together." I suggested. I took another bite of my lunch. According to my watch we still had plenty of time, and right now Rogue was more important than staying with my team. She _was_ my team, my true team, and her needs came above the needs of team red. When I finished eating we left together, heading towards the table Professor X was seated at.

"Kitty, Rogue, how may I help you?" He asked when we approached him. Rogue sighed.

"I'm lookin' for someone. Her name is Irene Alder."

"Your foster mother?" She nodded her head. He looked down the list he held in his hands, but shook his head in the end.

"There is no Irene Alder on my list." Rogue thought for a moment and then spoke,

"What about Destiny? Is there a Destiny on your list, Destiny Alder?" I gasped, Destiny! That had been the woman on the stretcher. The professor nodded his head, confirming my thoughts.

"As a matter of fact there is." Rogue sighed in relief and I smiled, grateful that my friend had found who she was looking for.

"She's injured though, they took her to the medical section of the shelter. I hope that helps you. Is that all?" Rogue nodded and stepped away for a moment, before a thought crossed her mind and she turned back.

"Professor, can we take her back to Bayville with us? The hospitals here are full, and there is no one to care for her. I know she's on the Brotherhood side, but I love her to much ta just leave her here."

"Of course." The professor answered, and I could have hugged him at that moment just by seeing the look on Rogue's face.

"There you are, we lost you!" Celest exclaimed. I turned to her and apologized for losing them. The professor had cajoled the rescue worker I'd seen earlier into taking Rogue to see Irene, and she was well on her way. I worked with Celest and Kendra until the sun started setting and our team once again met at the shelter. By then I was more than exhausted, and ready to go home. The whole X-Men team was there, and they too looked ready to drop at any moment.

"So that's your team?" Celest asked.

"Yep, they usually look a lot better." I answered.

"Well, you may be super heroes, but you're still only human and any human after a day like today is bound to be wiped." Kendra stated. I nodded my head in total agreement. Mr. McCoy passed us, coordinating a stretcher onto the X-Jet. The woman from Rogue's locket rested upon it looking as if she were just sleeping peacefully. Rogue didn't miss it, and was instantly at Irene's side.

            "I'm afraid to go to school tomorrow. I overheard some of the reporters, and they were making the disaster sound like it was the mutants' fault, even though they were only defending themselves."

            "I'm glad Japan is out of school in the spring." Celest murmured. Her mother walked up to us.

            "I just spoke to Kitty's professor. Celest, Kendra, I know you won't understand now, but you will later. I want you to go home with them to the institute. Things are going to be dangerous around here, and traveling across America after today isn't going to be safe for any mutant, and especially one like you, Celest, one who can't touch other human beings." I'd learned earlier that Celest was covered up because when she touched another person she transferred her consciousness into the person she'd touched, literally possessing them. Celest looked shocked.

            "Mom! They are still in school and everything. I can't just go live at their institute."

            "This is non debatable Celest. I would love to keep you around, or allow you to go back to Japan, but it's not going to happen. Things just changed. It's not longer safe for a mutant to live among society without help hiding. I saw you today. You were great at helping people. Go with them and learn, learn how to help people even more." Celest ran up to her mother and hugged her tightly, I was sure she didn't want to leave, but she could see the logic in her mother's words. Kendra would follow Celest to the institute because at the moment she was living with her best friend. Her parents had flipped when they discovered her powers, and until Celest's family took her in she'd been living on the streets.

            I sighed and walked towards the X-Jet, leaving this moment to them, and to them alone. Somehow I understood that they would not be the first new recruits coming to the Xavier Institute. The Professor had a big heart, and in a situation like this he was going to bring in as many students as possible, to protect, care for, and teach. I climbed onto the jet and took a seat once again next to Evan, who looked as if he were going to fall asleep in the next few minutes. I looked back at Rogue and Kurt. A makeshift bed had been made across the aisle from them where Irene lay. We took off less than an hour later, with Celest and Kendra, Irene, and the rest of us. I closed my eyes, and leaned my head back against the seat. Things were going to be hard, and the next day would only be the beginning. I dreaded going to school and facing all those people who would be saying horrible things about my kind without ever realizing that there were mutants around them. "Everyone is kneaded from the same dough, but not baked in the same oven." I began to chant in my mind.

~*~*~*~*~*~

That was the first chapter. Please tell me what you think, and I can't stress enough that I am just starting to write for this serious. Before this all my stories were Digimon, and this is a far cry from Digimon. I really do need all the constructive criticism and comments you can give me, but please, not flames. ~Lacey~ **_Next Chapter: Rogue's POV, Title Unknown_**


	2. Trouble

Battle Lines

Chapter 2: Trouble

**Rogue's POV**

            School was never my favorite place to be. I liked to learn, but I could do without a majority of the student body. Everyone seemed so quick to judge, and rumors spread across the campus like wildfires. The day wouldn't be complete if some poor sap's image wasn't destroyed. Even worst were school days after large events on the news, in this case the attack on Peace. Everyone had an opinion of their own, and no one kept their opinions to themselves. You couldn't walk into a room without hearing the words, "Did you hear what happened?" immediately followed by a whole spiel on what they thought about it. Of course, my pals at the institute and I were the only ones who really knew what happened. The rest were just filled in by whatever propaganda the media put forth.

            Propaganda is a horrible thing, and the media is great at spreading it. The day after the attack I was shocked to find exactly how much the story had been twisted to make it look like it was the mutants' fault. I wanted to waltz right up to the news station and give them a nice handshake, with my gloves off of course. Somehow I didn't think that would go over well with the Prof. and it would just give the media yet another excuse to talk down on mutants. What was the story? Law enforcement officials (since when?) entered the community to arrest a few mutants who weren't following the strict code of conduct. The mutants resisted and the community fought against their arrest. There was no mention of the FoH anywhere in the report. But of course there wouldn't be. The officials in charge of the organization most likely paid off the police to leave them out of it. According to everyone else the Friends of Humanity only sought peaceful relations with mutants in order to protect humans from possibly dangerous power. Oh yeah, and I'm Jean Grey!

            I groaned inwardly as the bell rang, signaling the end of break. I hadn't wanted to go to school in the first place. I'd even gone so far as asking if I could stay home, but the Prof. insisted I go since I wasn't ill and I'd already missed one day of school that week. I prayed that my grades wouldn't come into play during the argument, but dear old Mr. McCoy had to point out that my weekly progress report was showing a drop in my already wavering C average. I argued that Irene still hadn't come too, and she would be confused as to her whereabouts without me there, but Ororo promised she would come and pick me up if there were any change in her condition. All and all, I was stuck.

            My next class was speech and debate, and I had no doubts about what the topic of discussion would be. It had been the topic of discussion in almost all of my classes, including French. At least in French the discussion was marred by poor knowledge of the language. Unfortunately, I'd spent enough time with the Cajuns as a child to pick up the language. I only took French because it would be am easy A, or so I thought. I might have known how to speak the language, but writing it was a different story. I glanced down the hallway where my class awaited me, and then to my right where a door led to the field. I made a snap decision and walked out the door before anyone on my team had a chance to see me.

            I wasn't the best ditcher in the world. To a lot of people I looked like a troublemaker, but I always tried to stay _out_ of trouble. I'd only ditched class once before, and that was when I was 14. The school called Irene when I didn't show up, and at three thirty when I walked through the front door I was met with the lecture of my life. Never again had I tried to ditch school, but I felt at that moment that a lecture would be preferable to an hour of holding back my emotions lest I try and strangle someone. 

I wasn't going to go home, though. With the day being so warm and me covered from head to toe in clothing there was no way I could walk five miles. In one corner of the old field, the one the band and lesser sports practiced on, there was an abandoned storage shed practically hidden behind the trees and other foliage. That was where I would go. I knew it well. It was my spot to be alone at lunchtime when I didn't feel like sitting with the group, or listening to Miss. Perfect and her perfect friends. I was almost sure regular ditchers used the place since it was kept generally clean on the inside and had other signs of use, and I hoped that it wouldn't be in use this period. The last thing I wanted to do was spend the period with some troublemakers who had no excuse for ditching other than just not feeling like attending class.

The walk felt longer than usual, but I brushed it off as subconscious worry over being caught out of class. It didn't take me any longer than usual because just as I arrived the tardy bell sounded off five minutes. I sighed, taking one last look at the large school building, and pushed the weeping willow branches to the side, revealing a door. I grasped the knob and turned it. The door creaked open, and a small gasp caught my attention. I recoiled slightly and looked down, finding the last person anyone would have expected to be out of class.

Kitty Pryde was sitting in the corner of the small shack, an astrophysics book lying open and forgotten on her lap. Her chocolate brown eyes were wide with fear of being caught, and once she'd registered who I was, guilt. She was afraid I would tell the professor. I didn't say anything, but rather closed the door and took a seat opposite of her, showing that there was no threat. She eyed me for a moment. I didn't ask her why she was there, or begin to lecture her on why she shouldn't be ditching. Not only would it be hypocritical, but also Kitty didn't break the rules unless she had a good reason to.

Kitty was probably the most innocent person I knew. She was the last person anyone would suspect of wrongdoing. And even when you did catch her in the act you couldn't look into her eyes and punish her without first asking for an explanation. She had her faults, like her nasty temper, but her whole disposition made you forget about them. In a lot of ways she was like Jean. She was beautiful, and rarely got into any sort of trouble. She was a super genius, and passed all her classes with a 4.36 GPA. She was nice to almost everyone, and everyone liked her. But I didn't dislike her like I detested Jean. At first I wasn't too fond of the girl, at least when we first started sharing a room, but I got to know her and found that she was a really good friend, and she was wise beyond her years, despite her usual ditzy valley girl manner. If I got to know Jean maybe I would have liked her better, but I didn't want to get to know Jean. Miss. Popularity had enough friends.

"You're ditching class." Kitty observed. Her voice was soft and her tone serious.

"So're you." I pointed out. She nodded simply, and closed her astrophysics book. I sighed. Leave it to Kitty to study when she was ditching. Of course, it was her idea of pleasure reading since Bayville High didn't exactly offer a science course as advanced as astrophysics. Kitty didn't have any classes most of us would consider electives. In place of her two electives she took chemistry and advanced computer sciences, along with all freshmen honors classes, earth science, and P.E. How she managed all her homework, her social life, and X-Men training was beyond me.

"I just couldn't stay in school. Everyone was making me so mad with the way they talked. No one understands." Her fist hit the dust covered wood floor hard. I winced.

"I know how you feel. I was about ready to strangle someone. When did you come out here?"

"At the beginning of break. Lance told me about this place once. He cleaned it up after school one day so whenever he felt like shaking things up in the school he could come out and be alone to cool down."

"So that's where he went when he ditched school. Mystique used to yell mercilessly about his skipping class, saying that it was a bad reflection on her to be both principal and have her boarding students breaking the rules." My voice held a lot of disdain at the mention of Mystique. I never meant to say her name like that because I really had loved and cared for the woman, but it happened. Whenever I thought about my time at the brotherhood and the way she'd used me and lied to me… It was a dark time in my life. I had been angry at the whole world for her betrayal, even Irene for letting her do that to me. My mind shifted to Irene. For a while after I moved into the institute I didn't talk to or write to Irene. I blamed her for going along with Mystique. But after the issue with Kurt's past I realized that I had considered Irene my mother and I couldn't just live without her.

"Rogue, you blanked out on me. What's wrong?" Kitty asked. I shook my head.

"It's nothing." I replied.

"All right, but you know, I am always there if you need someone to talk to. We like only sleep five feet away you know."

"I know." I replied. We fell silent. It wasn't exactly an uncomfortable silence, but it wasn't one hundred percent comfortable either. She picked up her book and opened it to the page she left off on.  I sighed and opened my backpack, pulling out Shakespeare's Macbeth. It was taken out of Mr. McCoy's personal collection of Shakespeare's plays and other classical novels, and poetry. I was bored one Saturday afternoon and he told me to take a look and pick out what I thought I would enjoy. There were so many great selections, but I opted for Macbeth since I'd always wanted to read it.

I hadn't read more than three pages when the ground shaking roughly beneath me interrupted my reading. Kitty yelped and her book crashed to the ground. I closed Mr. McCoy's book and set it on the ground, looking over at Kitty. The old storage shed was old and I wasn't exactly sure how well it would hold up in an earthquake, and at the moment being crushed under tin and wood didn't sound to pleasant. My hand grabbed hold of Kitty's wrist and I jumped up, pulling her outside with me. It instantly became clear that the earthquake was anything but natural.

"Lance, stop!" Kitty cried. The sun outlined the figure of her boyfriend, and his hands were outstretched. At the sound of Kitty's voice he dropped them and stared in our general direction. Shock registered on his face and he came rushing towards us. Moment's later Kitty was in his embrace and I silently observed from the side.

"I didn't know you were in there. I am so sorry!" He exclaimed. They'd been going out for two months now and I was still one of the few at the Xavier Institute that accepted their relationship. A lot of the others still saw Lance as a member of the brotherhood who couldn't cut it in the X-Men. He was a double traitor, and someone not to be trusted. But Kitty didn't see that in him. She saw the ruggedly handsome rebel who was really sweet and charming. I saw Lance as a good friend who didn't judge me for leaving the brotherhood, or for being on the other side. He and Kitty separated after a short kiss, but his arm remained protectively around her shoulders.

"I wasn't expecting anyone to be out here. It's my secret spot. You two are the only people I know who knows about it and you're the last two I would expect to be out her. _You,_" He said pointing at me "don't like to get in trouble, and _you_ just aren't the type to ditch class." On the last part he squeezed Kitty's shoulders. I felt a pang of jealousy. Whenever people showed public displays of affection around me, whether they be boyfriend and girlfriend, or mother and child, I couldn't help but be jealous because they could, and I couldn't.

"Yeah, well, I'll get in less trouble ditchin' than I would if I laid someone out." I replied.

"My image would be totally ruined if I socked the next person who quoted the news." Kitty stated, "Not to mention I would be cleaning the X-Jet for, like, ever."

"That's why I'm out here. Duncan Matthews is in my class and he couldn't say enough about 'mutant freaks' and how they should be exterminated. I didn't even tell the teacher I was leaving. It's better to be suspended for walking out than to bring the entire school crashing down around everyone's head." Lance explained.

"Good choice." Kitty commended. I looked over at the school and realized how much of the school day was left. It was going to be awfully hard to keep all three of us in the small shack for the next four periods.

"Listen, how about I give you guys a lift home?" Lance asked as if he'd read my mind. It always creeped me out when someone said what I was thinking or answered a problem I was trying to work out in my head, especially since at the mansion two people really could see what was going on in my mind. 

"I don't know what the professor would say." Kitty whispered.

"If Baldy can't understand what's going on here than he's a lot more ignorant than I thought." Lance stated seriously. I snickered at the way he's nonchalantly called the Professor Baldy. It was a brotherhood thing, and sometimes I still had to catch myself before I used the nickname. Kitty laughed and playfully punched Lance's side.

"His name is not Baldy, it's Xavier. And you're right. Besides, we'd probably get in less trouble by going home where the adults know where we are than we would for staying out here with no one knowing where we are." Kitty's logic was impeccable.

"Okay, come on." We followed Lance to his Jeep, trusting that everyone would be in class and we wouldn't be seen. I could just imaging Evan skating by or Jean running an errand for her teacher just at the right time to bust us. It was bad enough we weren't in class, worst that we were climbing into Lance's car. I buckled the seatbelt around my waist and Lance started the Jeep. He backed out of the parking lot and started on the road to the institute. After a couple moments of silence he turned the radio on and turned it up. Kitty's nose wrinkled in distaste. She liked country, and divas, and Lance's rock certainly wasn't that. "My car, my music." He told her simply.

It didn't take us long to arrive at the manor, and Lance let us off at the gate. I entered security code and the gate slid open. Together we walked down the well-known path to the front door. Through the glass door I could see that no one was in the foyer. I unconsciously sighed in relief. Kitty looked at me nervously and then phased through the door. I opened it and followed her inside. Everything was silent, and it didn't seem like anyone was home. The both of us started up the stairs to out bedroom when we heard footsteps behind us.

"I thought I heard the front door open." Mr. McCoy stated calmly. I bit my lip and turned around, brushing my bangs away from my face. No sooner did my hand leave did they fall back into the same position.

"We… uh." I started.

"We were having trouble at school." Kitty declared. From the corner of my eyes I could see her eyes widen innocently. _That's right, use those big brown eyes of yours_, I thought. She'd melted my anger before by using her eyes, and she'd gotten out of trouble with Logan on more than one occasion. Of course, he really had a soft spot for her. "All the kids were talking about what happened, and I…"

"It's all right Kitty. I'm not going to lecture you. We actually figured some of you would cut class today, though I must say I'm surprised that the two of you came home. Not only because neither one of you drive yet, but not many people would come home during the school day and readily admit that they ditched."

"Lance gave us a ride home. We figured there was less chance of getting in ta trouble if ya knew where we were." I explained.

"I thank you for the courtesy. I'll have the professor call the school and have notes sent to the others so they don't expect you to be there after school." He dismissed us, and Kitty disappeared through our bedroom door.

"Um, Mr. McCoy, do you think I could go an' see Irene?" I asked as he turned to leave. He stopped and nodded. I dropped my bag at the top of the stairwell and climbed back down. We walked to the elevator and it carried us to the more technological area of the mansion. There were all sorts of neat things down there. Cerebro, the Danger Room, the entrance to the jet hanger… But also down there was the highly advanced infirmary where Irene was being kept. We stopped in front of the infirmary door just as it opened. Ororo stepped through, practically bumping into me. She looked surprised for a moment, and then said,

"Rogue! I was just going to call you. She's waking up." I didn't say anything. I bounded into the infirmary, pushing past Ororo. Just before the doors shut behind me I heard a motherly laugh, the kind a mother uses when admiring her children's energy. I shivered once inside, realizing how much I hated being alone in hospitals. Before Jean destroyed the infirmary with her telekinesis it had been all cold metal. Now it was a bit friendlier with a little color and a softer looking examining table, but the air of doom medical facilities held still hung heavily in the air, making it difficult to breath. Everything was so sterile, too sterile.

I slowly walked towards the examining table, the sound of my boots hitting the floor echoing off the walls. There was already a chair set by the table. I took a seat and took Irene's bare hand into my gloved one. Scanning equipment was connected to her, along with an IV to keep her from dehydrating. She didn't look sick, and the only indication anything was wrong was a bandage wrapped round her head. The fluttering of her eyelids told me that she would soon be awake.

As I watched her sleeping my mind raced. There were so many things I wanted to tell her, so many things I wanted to ask. I was a little nervous. It was the first time I'd been close to her in a little over a year. How would she react to my taking her to Bayville with me? Especially since she was a member of the Brotherhood. Would she be angry? I didn't know what I would do if she was. I wanted her to be at the institute with me. It wasn't as if I was trying to convert her into an X-Man. That would be impossible given her disability. I only wanted to keep an eye on her like I did when I was younger.

Her eyes fluttered open and I smiled. She couldn't see my smile, of course, but she could feel my hand in hers, and smell my perfume. It was the very same kind she'd given me for Christmas years before. She blinked her eyes a couple of times and took a deep breath.

"Where am I?" She asked after a moment of silence. I swallowed a lump that had just formed in my throat. _Come on Rogue, pull yourself together_, I chanted in my mind.

"You're in Bayville at the Xavier Institute." I informed her in a weak voice.

"Rogue?" She squeezed my hand.

"Yeah, it's me. I brought you here 'cause you were hurt. They didn't have enough room at the local hospital, and I didn't really trust 'em. I hope ya don't mind. The professor said it was all right." I replied a bit nervously.

"No, I don't mind. I understand completely." Her voice was comforting. It always was to me. With my free hand I smoothed a bit of her hair down and gave her hand a squeeze with the other.

"How're ya feelin'?"

"I've felt better. What time is it?"

"It's about 11:30a.m. Thursday." Her mouth turned down in a slight frown.

"Why aren't you in school child?" I almost laughed. Here she was, just waking up after a horrible trauma, and she was worried about why I wasn't in school, once a mother, always a mother. It didn't even take her very long to realize that I was there and she could re-establish her role as my caregiver.

"I was at school this morning, but I couldn't stay. The media has changed to whole story around and now everyone is talking badly about mutants, especially the mutants from Peace. The adults know I am home."

"I can only imagine. How did you come to Peace?"

"One of the Professor's friends called him and asked for our help. I was so scared for you. It was a war zone out there. I searched Miss. Molly's house and…" I trailed off, realizing that Irene hadn't the faintest idea of everything that went on. I had been told that she was out of the house before the FoH arrived.

"How was Molly?" I looked down at my lap and bit my lip, and then I looked back at Irene. I took a deep heaving breath.

"She was dead when I found her. Shot." My voice cracked. "I was so scared for you. She put up a fight. Your things were everywhere." I suddenly remembered what I had found. I unhooked the locket from around my neck and opened her hand, dropping it in gently. "I found this on the ground."

"My locket." She fingered it lovingly, "I thought I had lost it." I took it from her and bid her to lift up slightly. I hooked it around her neck.

"I had to fix the chain last night so it would hook." I took a deep breath, feeling the biggest question in my heart rise. "What happened to you?" I asked.

"I am not exactly sure of everything that happened. I was reading quietly while Molly slept when there was a great hullabaloo outside. I wasn't sure of what was going on so I woke Molly. She was quite ill. A few minutes later Tyler, Molly's neighbor, rushed into the house with his son to get us out. He led me out of the house though with much confusion. Just as we left I heard a commotion arise in Molly's house. Tyler was hit by something and I was left alone in the street with neither my cane, nor Piper." Piper was Irene's Seeing Eye dog. She was the kindest, most loyal dog I knew. She was my best friend and loved me, but when she was on duty she wouldn't even acknowledge I was there.

"Where was Piper?" I asked.

"I left her with Ally and her family. Thank goodness." She said, "After Tyler was hit I tried to walk, sticking to the road I knew was there. Someone grabbed me and when I struggled he hit me over the head, and that's the last thing I remember."

"I shoulda been there ta help you." I said guiltily. Irene took my hand into both of hers.

"No. You are a lot safer here with the professor and the others." She told me, "Things are getting dodgy for mutants. It's not safe out there, you need to be here where you can be protected."

"So do you." I replied. She remained silent, "Irene, you need to be here where it's safe. I know you're strong and you can take care of yourself. You did before I came to you, and after, but I don't feel comfortable with you living alone now that things are starting to happen."

"Rogue…"

"I'm not asking you to convert to Xavier's dream. He will let you stay whether you believe in it or not. I already asked him. Please. You could become part of the family." She was silent for a moment, and I waited with my heart in my throat. The thought even crossed my mind that I would go home with her if she said no. I just couldn't rightly allow her to live alone. Sometimes her visions came without warning, and if the public saw her double over in one of her spells it would put her in immense danger.

"All right. I will stay, for you." I smiled brightly and very carefully hugged her. I wished right then that I could kiss her on the cheek like I did when I was younger, but I refrained.

"You rest and I'll have Mr. McCoy check on you. I'm gonna ask the professor if we can bring Piper to the mansion." I squeezed her hand and bounced out of the room, happier than I'd felt all day.

            I yawned softly as I gently lay Mr. McCoy's collection of Edgar Allen Poe on the nightstand. I took a sip of water and at my sudden movement Piper lifted her head lazily, watching me with her large brown eyes. When she saw that I didn't need anything she put her head down once again. My eyes shifted to the clock, 1:30 am. I sighed contentedly and pulled the light chain. The room was suddenly bathed in darkness. It was a strange feeling, having Piper sleeping on the foot of my bed, but it was also a familiar one. I would always let her back home in Mississippi, and when she'd come to live at the institute with Irene and me she'd resumed the habit.

            The professor didn't even think to say no when I asked if Piper could come and live with us. He even had Logan prep the X-Jet to take us to Caldecott county where I could retrieve the special dog, and pick up Irene's belongings. I was filled with nostalgia when I set foot on the bank of the Mississippi river where we parked the X-Jet, but I was also afraid. I hadn't been home since I touched Cody at the school dance, and I wasn't sure what would happen if I met up with him there. Even worst, I had to face my former best friend, Ally. She was the daughter of a doctor, and extremely well off. We were from two different worlds, but we were best friends. When she opened the door to let me in I suddenly realized why I had taken such a liking to Kitty. She was so much like Ally.

            It was hard to leave Caldecott County and come back to Bayville. I'd always complained about how small the backwater town was, and how the townsfolk were to simpleminded, but I was faced with a truth I never accepted. It was home. But home is also where your family is and mine was back in Bayville, and Piper would be what made it complete. I closed my eyes and listened to her panting, letting it lure me to sleep. I was almost lost in a sleepy haze when the small phone in our bedroom rang. Piper lifted her head, her ears alert, and I just about jumped out of my skin. Kitty stirred in her sleep, but didn't wake up. I quickly picked up the receiver in an attempt to keep it that way.

            "Hello?" I asked, my voice a bit grumpy.

            "Kitty?" Lance asked. I rolled my eyes.

            "Does Kitty have a southern accent?" I snapped.

            "Rogue! Is Kitty awake?"

            "She's asleep right now like everyone else in the mansion. It's 1:30 in the mornin' why the hell are ya calling?" There was a momentary silence on the other side.

            "I guess I can tell you. It's not like your one of the X-Men who doesn't trust me." His voice was serious.

            "What is it?" I asked, starting to worry.

            "Listen, I'm not telling you this because I believe in your dream, or because I want to protect you X-Geeks. I just don't want Kitty to get hurt. I have to make this quick before anyone finds out I'm on the phone."

            "Lance, your worryin' me." I hadn't ever heard him speak so seriously, "What's going on?"

            "Magneto's back. He showed up this afternoon with new recruits, ready to make the humans pay for what they did in Peace. He said that only one thing is standing in his way, the X-Men. Tell Baldy to keep eyes out. I don't know when Magneto's going to attack, but I know he will." I gasped, my heart starting to beat faster. Magneto had been a great looming presence during my stay with the Brotherhood, and had almost killed me twice when I switched over to the X-Men.

            "I don't believe it." I whispered.

            "Believe it. I don't want Kitty to get hurt. I have to go." The line went dead and I let the phone fall against the dresser. Kitty groaned and lifted her head. Piper jumped off the bed, suddenly alert.

            "Wa's the matter?" She asked, voice slurred with sleep. I stared blankly at the phone, and then shifted my gaze to her.

            "Trouble." I stated simply, climbing out of my own bed. I rushed out of the bedroom into the dark hallway. They seemed much more ominous with the knowledge that the X-Men's greatest foe was back and looking for a way to destroy them. Mechanically my body made it's way to the professor's room. I slammed the door opened shouting his name.

            "What is it Rogue?" I took a deep breath.

            "Magneto. He's back with the brotherhood. He wants ta make the humans pay, an' he wants ta get ridda us." I said quickly. I felt a presence behind me, and then Ororo's hand on my shoulder. A moment later growling and mumbling told me that Logan was also on his way down the hall. They'd heard the door slam, and then my frantic voice.

            "Calm down Rogue. Where did you get this information?" He asked me calmly. It was a logical question.

            "Lance. He called for Kitty, but she wasn't awake. He told me instead and he sounded real serious." Logan growled.

            "Sure it ain't one of the Brotherhood's tricks?" I nodded my head.

            "He wouldn't do that ta Kitty, he cares about her. He doesn't want her to get hurt." I explained, trying to make them see. I trusted Lance. He was my friend. He cared about Kitty and if the need be he would turn against his leader to protect her. I understood that, so why couldn't they.

            "Lance's feelings for Kitty are genuine. I trust that he's telling the truth." Ororo supplied.

            "Yes, so do I. Magneto has no doubt heard about Peace, and what better time to build up his army to show humans the superiority of mutants." The professor said. I let out my breath. I hadn't even realized I was holding it. My hand unconsciously began to play with the fur on Piper's head. She'd followed me out of the room, sensing something was wrong.

            "So what are we gonna do?" I inquired. Logan looked at me harshly.

            "_You_ are going back to bed kid, and we are going to start a plan. Charles, we should wake the other staff members." I frowned, but looked down at Piper. I patted her head to get her attention. She looked up to me, awaiting my command.

            "Go wake up Irene, go on." The dog turned and walked out the door, heading to the room she knew her master was in.

            "Go on to bed Rogue, we will discuss this all in the morning." Ororo told me calmly. I nodded a goodnight to them and headed off to bed. I didn't like being left out, but I also knew better than to push my luck with Logan. He might not formally punish you, but you knew you crossed his path when your training sessions were suddenly a lot harder.

            Kitty was sitting on her bed waiting for me to explain when I walked into the room. Down the hall I could hear the murmur of the adults voices, and Piper's rich bark waking Irene up. She didn't have to say a word because her eyes said it all. 'What's going on?' they asked. I climbed into my own bed and pulled my knees up to my chest. She'd already put the phone back on its hook.

            "Lance called while you were sleeping with bad news. Magneto's back." I told her. She gasped and pulled her small stuffed dragon Lockheed close to her chest.

            "What are we going to do?"

            "I don't know. Logan made me come ta bed, but all the adults are talkin' about it."

            "If Magneto is the leader of the Brotherhood, why did Lance call and tell us he was back?" Kitty asked curiously. I smiled slightly.

            "Because of you. I think you chose a winner." She smiled and lay back down on her bed, pulling the comforter up to her chin.

            "I'm scared." She whispered. I turned off the light, letting shadows fill the room.

            "So'm I." I yawned, "But I think Logan might have been right. I really am tired."

            "Goodnight."

            "Goodnight." After a few minutes of silence the adults passed our room on their way downstairs. I rolled over, hugging my pillow close, and it wasn't long until I fell asleep.

**********

            "Rogue, wake up. The alarm went off like five minutes ago." Kitty's voice broke through the comfortable, foggy silence of sleep. I yawned and forced my eyes open. The room was still dark since at 5:30 in the morning the sun had yet to rise. I groaned, wishing that I hadn't stayed up to finish my book. Then, of course, I might not have been awake when Lance called. I almost wished I hadn't. All through the night I'd awakened from nightmares that I couldn't remember.

            Nightmares weren't anything new to me. Since my power developed I'd had at least one a week. Sometimes they would be my own, but oftentimes they would be awful memories from the people I'd absorbed. Mystique's memories were particularly frightening, and Magneto's filled me with terror. I had to train myself not to scream when I awoke. It always resulted in awakening half the institute, and one time I frightened Kitty out of a deep sleep. She ended up on the kitchen table. These nightmares had been different, though. Instead of forgetting about them when I slept, they kept replaying themselves. I couldn't remember what they were about, just that I'd awakened searching the room fearfully for anything out of place that might warn me of an enemy. I had a feeling that they weren't anyone's memories, only my own fears.

            "I don't want to get up." I mumbled into my pillow, pulling my comforter over my head.

            "You know what. I'm not going to deal with you this morning. I'm too tired. If I can't get you up, I'll get someone who can." Kitty huffed as she stalked out the bedroom door. I closed my eyes, turning over. I would just close my eyes and get up in a little while.

            "Marie, it's time to get up. If you're that tired than we can cancel your driving test today." I opened my eyes and pushed my comforter off my bed with a groan. It was Irene. Only she called me Marie, she was the only one who even knew my real name. I almost wished Kitty had gotten Logan. At least he wouldn't threaten to cancel my behind the wheel test. It was my chance at freedom. If I could drive then I could get away from the mansion and go where I wanted without relying on someone else.

            "I'm getting up." I barked, glaring at Kitty.

            "I'd take it kindly if you changed your tone."

            "Yeah, yeah." I muttered, swinging my legs over the side of the bed. "I'm up." Irene nodded, and walked out of the room, but not before saying,

            "Get dressed quickly. Your professor wants to speak with all of you rather than run a danger room session today." Kitty looked at me quizzically.

            "Marie?" I rolled my eyes.

            "It's my real name. You don't need ta be usin' it." She hushed up and walked over to her wardrobe where she pulled out a pair of jean capris and a pink baby-t. I shuffled slowly over to my own wardrobe and pulled open the second drawer. The selection was mostly black and green with only a few softer colors. I decided on black leather pants with my usual undershirt and my favorite green over shirt. I took my clothes out of the room to the bathroom, allowing Kitty to get dressed in the bedroom. I was dressed in five minutes and I opened my make-up bag, which was sitting next to Jubilation's and Amara's. I covered my pale face with cover-up and then lined my eyes with black liner and mascara. I painted on dark purple eye shadow and spread black lipstick over my lips. Once I was satisfied with my image I left the room, carrying my pajamas with me.

            Kitty was still putting on her make-up when I entered the room. It took her forever to get ready on school days. I dropped my pajamas on my bed and plopped down next to them, picking up my boots. I slipped my feet into them and tied the laces, then left Kitty to finish making herself beautiful. Celest was just coming out of her room down the hall. We were in a couple of classes together, and we lived under the same roof, but we still hadn't had much chance to talk. She and her friend Kendra were always together. It was easy to see that they were the best of friends.

            I really did want to get to know her. I didn't know of to many other mutants with an inability to touch, and it was something we shared in common. She knew the frustration I felt over having to isolate myself from the others. She knew what it was like to be alone in a crowd of friends. It wasn't only the similarity in our powers that attracted me to her, though. She had an outgoing personality and wasn't afraid to let her opinions show. I just about spit out my soda when she called Jean 'Miss. Perfect' to her face, and not many people had enough courage to tell Logan to lighten up. Of course, when she first saw him she attempted to run the other direction. I couldn't blame the girl. Big scary guy with retractable metal claws chasing after a bunch of teenagers… Who wouldn't be scared?

            "Morning." I called. She caught up with me.

            "Ohayou-gozaimasu." She yawned in Japanese. It was common for our foreign students to sometimes use their native languages. When Kurt became overly excited it was all I could do to understand a few words he was speaking to me. I had to tell him to slow down and speak English or French, that way I could understand him. She looked tired, but through virtue of make-up the bags under her eyes were lessened from what they might have been. 

She was dressed very nicely with a pair of black jeans and a black shirt with long lace sleeves and a very colorful picture of butterflies on the front. Covering her hands were a pair of light blue gloves that matched the largest butterfly, and around her neck she had tied a chiffon scarf of the same color. Her hair was pulled into a half ponytail with a barrette holding it back. Her style was unique, but at the same time it didn't seem strange. She could have easily infiltrated Jean's crowd without seeming out of place, but somehow I knew she wouldn't want to. She despised the upper cliques and the jocks, that much was clear.

"So, you were told that there was no danger room this morning?"

"Yeah, Miss. Perfect came in and told me. She was still in her pajamas and yet she looked as if she woke up with every hair in place and her make-up already on. How does she do that?" I laughed.

"Beats me, it's part of the mystery that is Jean Grey. The other part of the mystery is why as seemingly smart girl would be going out with Duncan Matthews." I replied with a smile. No one else shared my sentiments on Jean; it was nice to know someone who did.

"It's a typical scheme to become more popular. It's found all over the world in high schools. The most popular girl dates the most popular boy for image. The other, even bigger, mystery is how a telepath can't tell when a boy is constantly fawning over her." I mentally winced when she referred to Scott. I knew nothing would happen between us, he only had eyes for Jean, but I still couldn't help but have a crush on him. He was just strong, perfect, and sweet… He was the first person to really try and connect with me. I admired that.

"It's Xavier's moral code. No going into people's minds without their permission. Of course, if her powers are out of control she can't stop going into people's minds, and in my opinion she has selective control over her powers." Celest laughed.

"Oh yeah, we all do. Of course, my control, and yours, is artificial so we can't say we just momentarily forgot not to use them." We climbed down the staircase and into the front room where everyone was starting to gather. Jean and Scott were already there, of course. They were never late for a meeting. Kendra was curled up on the couch looking as if she were ready to take a literal catnap. On the small loveseat Irene sat sipping a hot cup of mystery liquid. Piper lay at her feet. I took a seat next to her while Celest took a seat next to her best friend.

Over the past two weeks I'd gotten used to having her around. She immediately resumed her task of being my mother, and it was refreshing. Of course, the moment the professor read her my grades I was in trouble. In Mississippi I was required to keep a B average or lose privileges until my grades were brought back up. I promised her I would work on bringing them up, and so far I was making every attempt to actually pay more attention in my classes and put a little more than just a little effort into my assignments.

"What're ya drinking?" I asked.

"Coffee."

"Can I have a drink?" I asked. She nodded and handed me the mug. I took a sip of the hot brew. I always liked the way Irene fixed hers. She put in just the right amount of sugar and milk. I handed back the mug and leaned back against the couch, willing the others to arrive so we could get the talk started. Kitty phased through the wall a moment later, and Evan skated through the door, earning him a scolding look from Ororo who'd given him countless lectures on skating in the house. Bobby, Jubilee, and Amara walked in next, followed by Jaime, Jaime, Jaime, and Jaime. I silently wondered who'd bumped the poor kid this time.

"You weren't seriously thinking about canceling my drive test?" I asked Irene. She smiled slightly.

"Not really, but it did get you out of bed. You really should try and sleep more. I know you were awake and reading when that boy called."

"No I wasn't." I defended, "I had just turned off the light. I finished my book."

"Turning off the light never stopped you at home."

"That's because I had your books and I didn't need a light to read those." Irene laughed softly. I fell silent, listening to the chatter of the others. Whenever she brought up home it made me a little homesick.

"I had a vision last night." She murmured softly. I looked up at her suddenly.

"What was it about?" I inquired.

"There are going to be hard times for mutants, my Rogue. I saw another community being attacked. I have already warned your professor and he has warned the community. I want you to be more careful than usual when around normal people. Their eyes have been opened to mutants and they are searching for anyone that fits the description."

"I will." I replied, just as Kurt ported in. Rahne walked in muttering something to herself in her own language, not looking too happy. Sam and Ray walked in behind her laughing smugly to themselves. There was no doubt in my mind that they were the guilty party responsible for her mood. I almost felt sorry for them, because you never cross a wolf without getting paid back in some way. Once we were all gathered the professor wheeled into the center of the semi-circle we'd created.

"I'm sure you all are wondering why I have cancelled the Danger Room sessions this morning and called you all here instead." There was a murmur of yeses throughout the students. "Last night some news of consequence was given to us from an anonymous member of the brotherhood. Magneto is back, and as my older x-men will tell you he is a very powerful mutant." You couldn't even hear the sound of breathing at the mention of Magneto. The new recruits had come in after his time, but horror stories spread quickly through the mansion, and many of them heard from Kitty or Jean about my near death experience at his hands in New York. Whether they'd battled him before or not, they knew he was not a force to be reckoned with.

"Isn't this Magneto guy the scary one everyone has told me about?" Kendra asked, "The one who thinks he's better than humans?"

"The one and only." Logan growled.

"His mission is to annihilate humans before they have a chance to annihilate us." Scott stated.

"It's like the basic mission of the brotherhood, but not everyone there agrees with it." Kitty added. I knew she was talking about Lance. He didn't fully agree with Magneto's dream, but he didn't agree with ours either.

"With Magneto's return comes a new problem. According to our source he's started recruiting again as well."

"Creating an army." Jean commented.

"Does that mean we are going to start recruiting again?" Kurt asked, looking over at Kendra and Celest.

"We have no choice. We can't protect everyone, but the mutants in need of the most guidance in how to use their powers will be invited to stay at the institute. With Cerebro we just be able to get to them before Magneto does, but we must be on our toes. Our source also says that we are, nor surprisingly, one of his targets." I'd never seen so many wide-eyed stares in my life. The magnitude of what we were being told was off the scale. Most of the students hadn't even been in an actual battle, much less been told that they might be faced with one sometime soon.

We left the sitting room with heavy hearts, and a lot more on our minds than schoolwork. The adults pulled me off to the side. I couldn't think of anything I'd done wrong recently so I couldn't imagine why I would be singled out.

"Rogue, you have your behind the wheel driving test this afternoon, do you not?" The professor asked, motioning for me to follow. My heart started to beat faster. He was going to cancel it after I worked so hard to get enough hours in on my permit to take the test. He was going to cancel it because of everything that had happened. I didn't want him to I wanted my license.

"Yeah." I replied nervously. Logan opened the door to the garage and stepped inside. I followed, not sure where they were leading me. Ororo turned on the light and I gasped. A brand new car sat between the X-Van and Scott's read convertible. A shiny black convertible bug exactly like the one I'd been admiring earlier.

"I…" I didn't know what to say, was it mine?

"It's all yours. Irene and us worked together to get it for ya." Logan explained. "Think you could take your test in it?" I nodded my head vigorously, taking a step closer; almost afraid that if I blinked it would disappear.

"Mine? I thought I was gonna buy my own." I managed to breath out.

"You've worked very hard Rogue, and after discussing things with Irene we decided that you deserved a car of your own."

"I should pay ya back. I will when I get a job." I said. Mr. McCoy shook his head.

"This car is a gift, you don't have to pay us back."

"I'd put away money to help you purchase a car a long time ago. I couldn't drive, but I knew one day you would be able to." Irene explained.

"Thank you so much!" I exclaimed to all of them. I was deeply touched. I didn't think they would ever do something like that for me. I knew Scott's car was a gift from the professor. Scott had to restore it and when he did it was his, but Scott was Scott, and I was me.

"How about you drive her to school and I'll take her home. That way you get a feel for her." I smiled, loving the suggestion. It wasn't long before I was in the driver's seat of my new car. Celest and Kendra were in the back seat, and Logan in the passengers seat. The drive to school ended all to soon, and I stepped out to face another torturous day at school.

"That is such an awesome car. Mine isn't that neat!" Celest exclaimed.

"You have a car?" I asked. Kendra laughed.

"Yeah, but her mom is currently borrowing it until she has a chance to bring it up to New York. Which is going to be a while since there aren't any mutant communities around here, only the Brotherhood and the Xavier Institute."

"The plight of having a mutant activist as a mother."

"Speaking of the Brotherhood, I wonder who their new recruits are." I thought out loud. The two shrugged their shoulders as we stepped inside of the school building. Celest stopped dead in her tracks, staring straight ahead. I followed her gaze to a raven-haired girl who looked surprisingly a lot like Kendra.

"Kurohyou…" She whispered venomously. Kendra was soon staring at the girl as well, a deep frown on her face.

"I can't believe she followed me here. I think I know who one of the newest members of the Brotherhood is."

"Who is she?" I asked.

"My older sister. Most people say their sisters are evil, but mine really is. She has the same mutant power as I do; only she turns into a black cat. She and I split from each other when our parents kicked us out for our abilities. She and I didn't get along. I just wanted to live quietly amongst the normal people, but she wanted to force humanity to accept her." Kendra explained. The dark haired girl caught our glances and smiled at Kendra, a strange glint in her eye. Things had just gotten a lot more interesting.

*********

Next: Chapter Three, Kurt's POV

Summary: When the X-Men begin to have reason to believe that Mystique is still alive Rogue and Kurt start getting edgy. Irene, though, might have the answers they are looking for. The FoH starts to grow in power and Magneto's group starts to stir up trouble, while the X-Men take on the responsibility of training and protecting a new group of teenage mutants.

A/N: There are going to be many original characters in this story, but they are used as a device to thicken the plot, rather than be the focus of the story. The main story will remain in the X-Men, and possibly the Brotherhood's POV.


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